Veteran retracts criticism of Kerry

Nope, none here. I'd gladly take the debate on military service: The Senator's Son country Club appointment ( records? paystubs? oops!! ) vs. The
volunteer decorated hero.
Jarheads & Squids - you mean you guys never heard the Air Force monikers?

But back to my question you avoided & thought 15 smiley faces would subjugate: Please put the Iraq invasion, occupation & fables of
reconstruction in terms of fighting for America's freedom!?!?

I respect my elders, which I'm fairly certain you are since my service was almost 20 years ago, so you won't get flamed if you don't start any. And
before you answer: this isn't the "boogeymen" of the Right Wing your talking to - I used to be a Republican, I served, & I think Marge's husband
is a Jarhead too.
The Generals heading CENTCOM ( Shwartzkopf & Zinni - Republicans to boot) all said Iraq was unnecessary & a cluster. Franks, who conveniently
retired & agreed, under pressure, to reverse the Powell doctrine, has said as much as well, though it's much more convaluted.

Are you insinuating that the Swift Vets went after McCain? last I heard they INSIST they are not in any way affiliated with the RNC or Bush campaign -
do you
have proof otherwise?

About them attacking McCain. Google
The first three links are from Disinfopedia, CBS, and the Free Republic. I think that's a good sampling, but it goes on.

The "swift boat" veterans attacking John Kerry's war record are led by veteran right-wing operatives using the same vicious techniques they used
against John McCain four years ago....Behind the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth are veteran corporate media consultant and Texas Republican activist
Merrie Spaeth, who is listed as the group's media contact; eternal Kerry antagonist and Dallas attorney John E. O'Neill, law partner of Spaeth's
late husband, Tex Lezar; and retired Rear Adm. Roy Hoffman, a cigar-chomping former Vietnam commander once described as "the classic body-count guy"
who "wanted hooches destroyed and people killed."

This SALON
article is a good place to start about where the money comes from.

Sorry cureme, Kerry is sinking like a rock on this one. Instead of balancing his sorry campaign on a 4-month farce in Vietnam, maybe he should have
focused on his 20-year Senate career. OH WAIT!!! That would've exposed him for what he really is... an indecisive liberal with a penchant for
looking out for his own interests rather than those of his constiuents. Looks like this house of cards is finally blowing apart.

I have clacked these keys just about all I can stand on this subject, though you can bet that I will continue to counter the cheap shots at our
president. GW, in his 2003 State of the Union Address enumerated the
reason it was necessary to invade Iraq and depose Saddam Hussein. These reasons for invading Iraq were good enough for me at the time and given what
was known and acknowledged by the intelligence community and our leaders, including John Kerry, invading was a sound rational decision. It is only in
retrospect that we can say that some of that intel might have been wrong. But, bear in mind that Saddam had plenty of time to hide or move his WMDs
out of the country.

The important thing is that we have taken out a brutal dictator and given one more country the chance at democratic self-rule and we have taken the
fight to our enemies, instead of waiting for them to strike here at home.

I've taken my stand, Bout Time, and I'm not backing down. I only regret that I am too old for this
one.

The "swift boat" veterans attacking John Kerry's war record are led by veteran right-wing operatives using the same vicious techniques they used
against John McCain four years ago....Behind the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth are veteran corporate media consultant and Texas Republican activist
Merrie Spaeth....................blah blah

Your attacking financial contributors that backed an attack on McCain and that seems like a strawman argument to me. The Swift Vets will take funding
wherever they can get it - in fact I think they would even accept a donation from you. Would a donation from you change their view.....I don't think
so.

Insinuating a groups connection to another event four years ago that they had not a thing to do because of a common doner(s) is disingenious at
best.

I've taken my stand, Bout Time, and I'm not backing down. I only regret that I am too old for this
one.

[edit on 04/8/6 by GradyPhilpott]

I regret too, that you and all others who've signed onto this businessman's war of first resort are too old or infirm; we would do much better to
offer up our past warriors instead of our future.
Instead, all we have are crony connected corporations sucking billions off of our tax dollars, taking billions from Iraq's oil profits, 10's of
thousands of American youth whose lives are shattered, and a country who was given a thug to run it by the US. Since we have no control in Iraq, Civil
War is likely.

And before you go off on my "no control " statement:

We don't control :

-Sadr City
- Najaf
- Basra
- Fallujah
-Western Iraq, according to reports from Knight Ridder and The Los Angeles Times, U.S. forces have hunkered down, manning watch posts but not
patrolling. In effect, this cedes control of the population to the insurgents. And everywhere, of course, the mortar attacks, bombings, kidnappings
and assassinations go on.

(Looks like the Afgan campaign part II: we have control over nothing but the capital and STILL the VP was blown up, anyone whose an offical
has been killed or an attempts made & several attempts on the Pres.!!!)

Add to that the unemployed Iraqi army & young men ( with nothing better to do than become insurgents), the snail's pace of reconstructiion with
regular blackouts & sewage in the water and we'll have every Iraqi that's supported us turned against us.

Yes, my husband is a Jarhead he retired five years ago, he does love this country and to say that you do not speak bad about your commander in chief
when you are an active duty my husband believe that.

Now kozmo wake up and smell the roses Kerry is still a war hero and not amount of BS will tarnish that image at least he has a record. We have a
president that declared a war when he does not even know what a war look like so in his eyes the soldiers that are dying in his war mean nothing to
him he is heartless.

And for shooting a teen in the bag guess what if that teen is going to kill me I will shoot him in the head, behind, side, top or anywhere I can get a
good hit too better him death than me.

In addition, for all the Jarhead in here go heroes and for the other branches go heroes too.

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